July 10, 2025 • 15 mins
We all face the choice between spending money on new stuff or investing in moments that truly matter. In this episode of Financially Confident Christian, Ralph breaks down why experiences often bring more lasting joy than material purchases and how our faith can help guide this decision. If you’ve ever wrestled with where to put your dollars, this episode will help you weigh whether to invest in experiences or possessions.
Check out the full podcast episode here
You’ll get practical, faith-based advice on how to prioritize relationships, memories, and meaningful time over the fleeting excitement of buying things. Ralph shares biblical wisdom, personal stories, and actionable tips to help you live with intentionality and align every spending decision with your values.
Chapters:
- 00:12 - The Illusion of Satisfaction
- 01:12 - Investing in Experiences vs. Possessions
- 04:46 - Prioritizing Meaningful Experiences
- 07:15 - Value-Aligned Experiences
- 08:38 - Investing in Meaningful Experiences
- 12:09 - Mindfulness in Financial Choices
Takeaways:
- Buying stuff gives you a quick thrill, but that joy disappears faster than you think.
- Possessions just pile up and create clutter, while real memories last a lifetime.
- Investing in experiences with loved ones brings true joy that outlasts any purchase.
- Focusing on lasting relationships over temporary possessions leads to genuine happiness and contentment.
- True joy comes from people and experiences, not from the material things we own.
- Making memories is way more valuable than accumulating stuff that eventually collects dust.
Links referenced:
WATCH NOW ON YOUTUBE (OUR VIDEO VERSION)
WATCH NOW ON RUMBLE (OUR VIDEO VERSION)
Please share our Podcast with all your friends and family!
Submit your questions or ideas for future shows - email us at
ralph@askralph.com or leave a voicemail message on our podcast page
Buy Ralph's Book - Mastering Your Finances!
Buy Ralph's Book - Gospel of Entrepreneurship: Following Jesus in Your Business Journey
Buy Ralph's Book - How to Become a Financially Confident...
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Ralph (00:00):
You buy the thing quick, hit feels good, but then it fades absolutely fast.
Just more clutter.
But that late night laughwith someone you love.
That sticks for life.
Here's the truth, stuff doesn't satisfy.
Memories.
Do want real wealth?
Stop buying crap.
Start buying what lasts.
(00:20):
Stick with me and I'm gonna showyou how to do that on today's show.
Hey there.
Welcome back to your daily,financially Confident Christian.
(00:41):
I'm Ralph, and it's great for you tobe here again today and just working
towards answering that question, how can Ibecome a financially confident Christian?
We're continuing on ourseries Beyond the Budget.
Finding financial freedomthrough living intentionally.
Now, if you missed yesterday'sshow, we talked about unsubscribing
from consumer culture.
So if you miss it, I'm gonnaencourage you to go check it out.
(01:03):
I showed you how to break thatcycle of that social culture
that's trying to, consumerculture's pulling you in so tight.
But today we're gonna change thesubject and we're gonna talk about this.
Should I invest my money inexperiences over possessions?
We're gonna get into it today.
Because here's the wayit usually plays out.
At least it plays out this way for me.
(01:23):
You buy something that you thought wasgonna bring you joy, and maybe it did.
It was that instant gratification.
Oh, I had joy for maybe about 10 seconds.
But that joy, it fades fast.
But those shared moments, those timesthat are just you and somebody you
love, or maybe you and your grandfatheror or your mom or your dad, those
(01:43):
shared moments bring lasting joy.
See that pattern, if we really want tothink about it, it reveals a true struggle
that a lot of us deal with, and we haveto come to the realization that investing
in fleeting stuff instead of lastingmeaning doesn't work for us anymore.
All it does is it leads to clutter,all kinds of stuff, crap all around
(02:07):
us, which leads to discontent and inthe end just wasting a lot of money.
And here's the thing I want you toknow and I want you to hear today.
I want you to hear loud and clear.
Possessions fade.
but experiences, those enrich your life.
I thought about it when I waspreparing for today's show.
(02:29):
I can't remember most of my toys as a kid.
I couldn't.
I mean, I here and there.
Somebody will post something on things.
Oh yeah, I remember I had that.
I don't remember those things.
I do remember those tender moments I hadwith my mom now that she's not with us
anymore, and I remember those days justrunning around my grandfather's garden.
(02:49):
Those were experiences and see, it'sthose experiences that enrich our lives,
not the stuff, not the crap that we buy.
Let's look to scripture for some,God, look at the book of Matthew
chapter six, verses 19 to 21, andthis just nails it with a hammer.
Do not store up treasures on earth,but store up treasures in heaven
(03:10):
for where your treasure is there.
Your heart will be also,
your heart is not going to besatisfied in stuff, but just
think about those relationshipsI mentioned a few minutes ago.
Those are things I think about every day.
Let's look at Proverbschapter 15, verse 17.
(03:32):
Better.
A meal of vegetables where there is love.
Think about that at the time.
A meal of vegetables.
Lot people say, Rob, it's nota meal, it's just vegetables.
But that's better.
A meal of that where there islove, because here's a truth
bomb for today, and it took me awhile to really understand this.
(03:53):
Honestly, it took me about 50 years of mylife, but when I finally figured it out.
It was life changing and, and it's thisstatement, True joy, the true joy of
life is not found in your stuff, butit's found in people, it's found in
(04:14):
purpose, and it's found in presence.
And here's the biblical connectionto this Truly why stewardship.
If we want to be why stewards ofwhat God has given us, it values
relationships over that material gain.
So now you're saying, Ralph,great, okay, I get it.
(04:35):
But how do I make this work in my life?
What can I do?
How do I shift towards lasting richness?
I've got a really simple way for you todo it, and it's all about prioritizing.
I want you to prioritize meaningfulexperiences and relationship
building over material purchases.
Now that sounds easy.
I wanna talk to you in a coupleminutes about how to make that
(04:57):
happen, but that's what it's about.
It's about prioritizing thosemeaningful experiences, those
times, those relationships.
Over that crap, that stuff that youbuy that ends up on a shelf that
you don't even look at or ends up,you know, going to the charity.
So here's your one action item for today.
I want you to reflect on a past purchase.
(05:18):
I want you to think aboutsomething you bought recently.
Just think about it for somethingcomes to mind and ask yourself this
really brutally honest question,did that bring you lasting joy?
Did it bring you lasting joy?
I think about the last thing I bought.
I bought a new car, for example.
(05:40):
Did it bring me lasting joy?
No.
It was kind of cool when I first got it.
It showed it around it.
Yeah, but it wasn't joy.
But now I want you to think the nextquestion, think of a recent experience.
Did
that leave deeper joy?
Lemme give you some examples.
Let's say you purchased a trendy$50 gadget from an online ad. You're
(06:01):
scrolling through Facebook, yousay, oh, this is a cool gadget.
I gotta have this.
You got it.
You used it one time.
Where's it at now?
It's in a drawer somewhere.
It's collecting dust on the shelf.
But think about that interaction youhad with your kids, that spontaneous
walk and that stopping at the ice creamstand with your kids and just listening
(06:22):
to their laughter and that, and thinkabout how much of a happy memory that is.
Tech Gadget used it one time thatwalk with your kids and stopping at
the ice cream stand, just watching'em run around and maybe one of 'em
drop their ice cream on the ground.
That's a memory thatyou'll cherish forever.
Maybe you're, you're in the shoes.
You bought this pair of expensive shoes.
(06:43):
You, you bought it on impulse.
You were walking through 'em alland said, oh, those are sharp.
I gotta have those.
And they looked great.
Maybe they looked great on your feet.
Everybody's, oh, thoseare great shoes, Sally.
Now you're second guessing the cost.
'cause you're looking at your budgetgoing, man, I, I was more than I
should have spent on a pair of shoes.
But then think about a comparison to that.
(07:05):
Maybe you could have spent just10 bucks, rented a movie at home
with your spouse and had a deeperconnection and really found relaxation.
I. So once you think about those things,next thing I want you to do is brainstorm
one value aligned experience, and I'mgonna give you some examples in a second.
Ask yourself what simple experience bringsjoy to my life and fits into my values?
(07:30):
We talked a lot a coupledays ago about defining your
values, defining your enough.
Well, maybe for you, you value connection.
It's important that youconnect with people.
Here's a great idea for you.
If you want to have a value online,that's not gonna cost you any money.
Invite a friend over for coffee.
Make it at home.
It's not gonna, not $10 share.
(07:50):
No.
Just a simple cup of coffee.
I don't drink coffee, but a cup of tea,whatever that is, and have a conversation.
Share their life.
Share what's going on in their life.
Be genuinely interested in them.
Maybe you value peace and rest.
You're not gonna get that fromgoing to buying something.
So if you really wanna live in that,take a morning walk by the lake.
(08:14):
You don't have to buy anything.
Just listen to some worshipmusic or listen to the show.
Or journal some, or thinkabout why you're walking.
That's an experience.
Or maybe you value family.
So maybe for you, instead ofspending money on something, have
the Saturday afternoon board gamesand pizza night with your kids.
Yeah, it might cost you acouple bucks for the pizza.
(08:35):
But you're gonna remember those days.
The rest of your life, you're gonna thinkback when, like me, my kids are grown now.
They're, they're, they're,they're al the nesta, as they say.
And, and I think back at it now, like Ididn't take the time to invest in those
experiences as much as I could have.
So I just wanna encourage you to do that.
The third thing I'm gonna encourageyou to do is to plan and prioritize,
because as I see on the show all thetime, what gets measured gets done.
(08:58):
Schedule these experiences because it'snot gonna feel normal at first, perhaps.
Then prioritize that budget for it.
Even if it's a small material purchase.
You need, like the pizzas forexample, you can budget for that.
For example, let's say you wantto do something with the family.
Schedule a Sunday familyhike and bring along snacks.
(09:19):
Bring along snacks.
You don't have to worry about the kids.
Hey mom, what are we going to eat?
You got snacks right there and youdon't have to worry about order
and takeout this week instead.
Or maybe plan a cozy evening at, at homewith your spouse, maybe some candlelight
music and your favorite takeoff.
A good friend of mine, mark, does apodcast called Practical Prepping, and he
and his wife were talking about low or nocost ways to, to really enjoy date night.
(09:42):
Well, one of the things they mentioned is,you know, they set the table in the dining
room, they put the nice, the, the candlein the middle, and a nice tablecloth.
They were gonna have dinnertogether anyway, cost them nothing.
But think about the experience of that.
Maybe you host a potluck dinnerwith your friends next Friday.
Instead of all of you goingout to dinner and spending a
(10:02):
ton of money, have a potluck.
Everybody brings something
that will be an experiencethat you'll remember.
You'll grow, you'll grow closer to people,and you'll build those relationships.
And all of this helps because itredirects spending to what truly matters.
I hope you're hearing this.
It's not about your stuff.
(10:22):
It's not about the crap.
It's the relationships because it deepensjoy, it deepens those connections.
And when you have joy and you havestrong relationships, you've got peace.
And in the end, it absolutelyreinforces purposeful living.
Well, let's pray together.
Father God, we thank you for the joyof meaningful experiences in our lives.
(10:46):
Lord, just forgive us right now forchasing those temporary possessions,
those quick hits, that make usfeel full for just a second Lord.
But then they're just gone.
They're wiped out.
And we just ask that you wouldhelp us to invest in relationships.
Lord, help us to invest ingrowth and invest in your glory.
And Lord, again, we ask that youwould help us let our spending
reflect those eternal priorities.
(11:08):
And we just ask you to fillus with lasting joy, Lord,
and fill us with your wisdom.
And we ask this in confidence.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
As I said a few minutes ago, if youhear nothing else today, remember
this experiences enrich your life,but possessions are always gonna fade.
(11:29):
So make a decision today.
Make a decision to choosemoments over material this week.
You are moving towards lastingfreedom, and if today's episode
has helped you, I wanna encourageyou to share it with somebody else
who needs a little, a little help.
A little pat on the back,a little hug, as they say.
You can point them right to our website.
That's it.
Financially confident christian.com.
(11:51):
And while you're there or they'rethere, I wanna give you a free gift.
It's a copy of my book.
It's called Mastering Your Finances.
Absolutely free for you.
It's a short read, but it is significantlyimpactful to help you get your
finances going in the right order.
And you can get that againby going to financially
confident christian.com/master.
Now, tomorrow we're going to take itup a notch even further as we work.
(12:14):
To be intentional, we're gonna betalking about applying mindfulness to
every spending choice that we make.
We're gonna really look at every singlechoice and apply mindfulness to it.
So I wanna encourage you not tomiss it, but let's go out there
today and be financially confident.
Christians, you can do this.
I truly believe in you.
Believe in yourself.
(12:34):
Stay financially savvy.
God bless you, and youhave a great day today.
You buy the thing quick, hit feels good, but then it fades absolutely fast.
Just more clutter.
But that late night laughwith someone you love.
That sticks for life.
Here's the truth, stuff doesn't satisfy.
Memories.
Do want real wealth?
Stop buying crap.
Start buying what lasts.
(00:20):
Stick with me and I'm gonna showyou how to do that on today's show.
Hey there.
Welcome back to your daily,financially Confident Christian.
(00:41):
I'm Ralph, and it's great for you tobe here again today and just working
towards answering that question, how can Ibecome a financially confident Christian?
We're continuing on ourseries Beyond the Budget.
Finding financial freedomthrough living intentionally.
Now, if you missed yesterday'sshow, we talked about unsubscribing
from consumer culture.
So if you miss it, I'm gonnaencourage you to go check it out.
(01:03):
I showed you how to break thatcycle of that social culture
that's trying to, consumerculture's pulling you in so tight.
But today we're gonna change thesubject and we're gonna talk about this.
Should I invest my money inexperiences over possessions?
We're gonna get into it today.
Because here's the wayit usually plays out.
At least it plays out this way for me.
(01:23):
You buy something that you thought wasgonna bring you joy, and maybe it did.
It was that instant gratification.
Oh, I had joy for maybe about 10 seconds.
But that joy, it fades fast.
But those shared moments, those timesthat are just you and somebody you
love, or maybe you and your grandfatheror or your mom or your dad, those
(01:43):
shared moments bring lasting joy.
See that pattern, if we really want tothink about it, it reveals a true struggle
that a lot of us deal with, and we haveto come to the realization that investing
in fleeting stuff instead of lastingmeaning doesn't work for us anymore.
All it does is it leads to clutter,all kinds of stuff, crap all around
(02:07):
us, which leads to discontent and inthe end just wasting a lot of money.
And here's the thing I want you toknow and I want you to hear today.
I want you to hear loud and clear.
Possessions fade.
but experiences, those enrich your life.
I thought about it when I waspreparing for today's show.
(02:29):
I can't remember most of my toys as a kid.
I couldn't.
I mean, I here and there.
Somebody will post something on things.
Oh yeah, I remember I had that.
I don't remember those things.
I do remember those tender moments I hadwith my mom now that she's not with us
anymore, and I remember those days justrunning around my grandfather's garden.
(02:49):
Those were experiences and see, it'sthose experiences that enrich our lives,
not the stuff, not the crap that we buy.
Let's look to scripture for some,God, look at the book of Matthew
chapter six, verses 19 to 21, andthis just nails it with a hammer.
Do not store up treasures on earth,but store up treasures in heaven
(03:10):
for where your treasure is there.
Your heart will be also,
your heart is not going to besatisfied in stuff, but just
think about those relationshipsI mentioned a few minutes ago.
Those are things I think about every day.
Let's look at Proverbschapter 15, verse 17.
(03:32):
Better.
A meal of vegetables where there is love.
Think about that at the time.
A meal of vegetables.
Lot people say, Rob, it's nota meal, it's just vegetables.
But that's better.
A meal of that where there islove, because here's a truth
bomb for today, and it took me awhile to really understand this.
(03:53):
Honestly, it took me about 50 years of mylife, but when I finally figured it out.
It was life changing and, and it's thisstatement, True joy, the true joy of
life is not found in your stuff, butit's found in people, it's found in
(04:14):
purpose, and it's found in presence.
And here's the biblical connectionto this Truly why stewardship.
If we want to be why stewards ofwhat God has given us, it values
relationships over that material gain.
So now you're saying, Ralph,great, okay, I get it.
(04:35):
But how do I make this work in my life?
What can I do?
How do I shift towards lasting richness?
I've got a really simple way for you todo it, and it's all about prioritizing.
I want you to prioritize meaningfulexperiences and relationship
building over material purchases.
Now that sounds easy.
I wanna talk to you in a coupleminutes about how to make that
(04:57):
happen, but that's what it's about.
It's about prioritizing thosemeaningful experiences, those
times, those relationships.
Over that crap, that stuff that youbuy that ends up on a shelf that
you don't even look at or ends up,you know, going to the charity.
So here's your one action item for today.
I want you to reflect on a past purchase.
(05:18):
I want you to think aboutsomething you bought recently.
Just think about it for somethingcomes to mind and ask yourself this
really brutally honest question,did that bring you lasting joy?
Did it bring you lasting joy?
I think about the last thing I bought.
I bought a new car, for example.
(05:40):
Did it bring me lasting joy?
No.
It was kind of cool when I first got it.
It showed it around it.
Yeah, but it wasn't joy.
But now I want you to think the nextquestion, think of a recent experience.
Did
that leave deeper joy?
Lemme give you some examples.
Let's say you purchased a trendy$50 gadget from an online ad. You're
(06:01):
scrolling through Facebook, yousay, oh, this is a cool gadget.
I gotta have this.
You got it.
You used it one time.
Where's it at now?
It's in a drawer somewhere.
It's collecting dust on the shelf.
But think about that interaction youhad with your kids, that spontaneous
walk and that stopping at the ice creamstand with your kids and just listening
(06:22):
to their laughter and that, and thinkabout how much of a happy memory that is.
Tech Gadget used it one time thatwalk with your kids and stopping at
the ice cream stand, just watching'em run around and maybe one of 'em
drop their ice cream on the ground.
That's a memory thatyou'll cherish forever.
Maybe you're, you're in the shoes.
You bought this pair of expensive shoes.
(06:43):
You, you bought it on impulse.
You were walking through 'em alland said, oh, those are sharp.
I gotta have those.
And they looked great.
Maybe they looked great on your feet.
Everybody's, oh, thoseare great shoes, Sally.
Now you're second guessing the cost.
'cause you're looking at your budgetgoing, man, I, I was more than I
should have spent on a pair of shoes.
But then think about a comparison to that.
(07:05):
Maybe you could have spent just10 bucks, rented a movie at home
with your spouse and had a deeperconnection and really found relaxation.
I. So once you think about those things,next thing I want you to do is brainstorm
one value aligned experience, and I'mgonna give you some examples in a second.
Ask yourself what simple experience bringsjoy to my life and fits into my values?
(07:30):
We talked a lot a coupledays ago about defining your
values, defining your enough.
Well, maybe for you, you value connection.
It's important that youconnect with people.
Here's a great idea for you.
If you want to have a value online,that's not gonna cost you any money.
Invite a friend over for coffee.
Make it at home.
It's not gonna, not $10 share.
(07:50):
No.
Just a simple cup of coffee.
I don't drink coffee, but a cup of tea,whatever that is, and have a conversation.
Share their life.
Share what's going on in their life.
Be genuinely interested in them.
Maybe you value peace and rest.
You're not gonna get that fromgoing to buying something.
So if you really wanna live in that,take a morning walk by the lake.
(08:14):
You don't have to buy anything.
Just listen to some worshipmusic or listen to the show.
Or journal some, or thinkabout why you're walking.
That's an experience.
Or maybe you value family.
So maybe for you, instead ofspending money on something, have
the Saturday afternoon board gamesand pizza night with your kids.
Yeah, it might cost you acouple bucks for the pizza.
(08:35):
But you're gonna remember those days.
The rest of your life, you're gonna thinkback when, like me, my kids are grown now.
They're, they're, they're,they're al the nesta, as they say.
And, and I think back at it now, like Ididn't take the time to invest in those
experiences as much as I could have.
So I just wanna encourage you to do that.
The third thing I'm gonna encourageyou to do is to plan and prioritize,
because as I see on the show all thetime, what gets measured gets done.
(08:58):
Schedule these experiences because it'snot gonna feel normal at first, perhaps.
Then prioritize that budget for it.
Even if it's a small material purchase.
You need, like the pizzas forexample, you can budget for that.
For example, let's say you wantto do something with the family.
Schedule a Sunday familyhike and bring along snacks.
(09:19):
Bring along snacks.
You don't have to worry about the kids.
Hey mom, what are we going to eat?
You got snacks right there and youdon't have to worry about order
and takeout this week instead.
Or maybe plan a cozy evening at, at homewith your spouse, maybe some candlelight
music and your favorite takeoff.
A good friend of mine, mark, does apodcast called Practical Prepping, and he
and his wife were talking about low or nocost ways to, to really enjoy date night.
(09:42):
Well, one of the things they mentioned is,you know, they set the table in the dining
room, they put the nice, the, the candlein the middle, and a nice tablecloth.
They were gonna have dinnertogether anyway, cost them nothing.
But think about the experience of that.
Maybe you host a potluck dinnerwith your friends next Friday.
Instead of all of you goingout to dinner and spending a
(10:02):
ton of money, have a potluck.
Everybody brings something
that will be an experiencethat you'll remember.
You'll grow, you'll grow closer to people,and you'll build those relationships.
And all of this helps because itredirects spending to what truly matters.
I hope you're hearing this.
It's not about your stuff.
(10:22):
It's not about the crap.
It's the relationships because it deepensjoy, it deepens those connections.
And when you have joy and you havestrong relationships, you've got peace.
And in the end, it absolutelyreinforces purposeful living.
Well, let's pray together.
Father God, we thank you for the joyof meaningful experiences in our lives.
(10:46):
Lord, just forgive us right now forchasing those temporary possessions,
those quick hits, that make usfeel full for just a second Lord.
But then they're just gone.
They're wiped out.
And we just ask that you wouldhelp us to invest in relationships.
Lord, help us to invest ingrowth and invest in your glory.
And Lord, again, we ask that youwould help us let our spending
reflect those eternal priorities.
(11:08):
And we just ask you to fillus with lasting joy, Lord,
and fill us with your wisdom.
And we ask this in confidence.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
As I said a few minutes ago, if youhear nothing else today, remember
this experiences enrich your life,but possessions are always gonna fade.
(11:29):
So make a decision today.
Make a decision to choosemoments over material this week.
You are moving towards lastingfreedom, and if today's episode
has helped you, I wanna encourageyou to share it with somebody else
who needs a little, a little help.
A little pat on the back,a little hug, as they say.
You can point them right to our website.
That's it.
Financially confident christian.com.
(11:51):
And while you're there or they'rethere, I wanna give you a free gift.
It's a copy of my book.
It's called Mastering Your Finances.
Absolutely free for you.
It's a short read, but it is significantlyimpactful to help you get your
finances going in the right order.
And you can get that againby going to financially
confident christian.com/master.
Now, tomorrow we're going to take itup a notch even further as we work.
(12:14):
To be intentional, we're gonna betalking about applying mindfulness to
every spending choice that we make.
We're gonna really look at every singlechoice and apply mindfulness to it.
So I wanna encourage you not tomiss it, but let's go out there
today and be financially confident.
Christians, you can do this.
I truly believe in you.
Believe in yourself.
(12:34):
Stay financially savvy.
God bless you, and youhave a great day today.
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